The former UFC welterweight champion of the world is in the middle of a rough patch of form that has seen him lose three of his last four, and four of his last six contests.

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Putting himself under pressure: Johny Hendricks says defeat at UFC 207 could lead to retirement

And ‘Bigg Rigg’ explained he doesn’t plan on sticking around just to become a divisional gatekeeper, as he revealed he’s throwing all his chips on the table for his upcoming clash with Neil Magny in Las Vegas.

"If I go out there and let's just say - crazier things have happened - and I lose? Well, I guess (it's time) to say, 'I'm done.'” he told ESPN’s 5ive Rounds podcast when the fight was announced.

"I'm not going to keep fighting to hopefully find a person I can beat. At that point, it might be the fact your body just says, 'Hey, I don't want to do this anymore.'"

Hendricks revealed one of the most stinging criticisms of his performance against Kelvin Gastelum at UFC 200 came from his wife, who labelled his performance ‘pathetic’.

"After that last fight, me and my wife sat down and she said, 'Johny, if you're gonna fight like that, quit, because that's pathetic,'" Hendricks said.

"I said, 'I agree! I agree, woman!’ That was not how I fight.

"At that moment, I just looked at her and said, 'I still want to fight' and she said, 'If you're gonna fight, fight. I'm not gonna tell you that you can't do this, but (I will) if you don't train to win.’"

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Recent losses to Stephen 'Wonderboy' Thompson and Kelvin Gastelum have forced Hendricks to consider his future

And Hendricks said he’s prepared to make the difficult decision to put family life on the back burner in an attempt to reach the top of the sport once again.

"I know it sounds bad, and I told my wife this, but I need to be an athlete again,” he said.

"And what does being an athlete mean? It means I have to be a little selfish again. I have to put my career sort of ahead of everything else, and I don't like doing that.

"I wanted to be a father and I wanted to be involved in my children's athletics, school stuff like that. And then the next thing you know, you're down two fights.

Final fling? Johny Hendricks says it's win or bust at UFC 207

"I still believe in my mind I'm the best welterweight in the world. I know I haven't proved it, but (I haven't been) training to my full potential because I'm trying to be more of a father than an athlete.

"My back's against the wall. I don't want to be one of those guys who fights until they're 38, 40 years old.

"I don't want to put my wife through that and I don't want to put my kids through that. That's not me."

Hendricks takes on Magny in the featured preliminary bout of UFC 207 in Las Vegas on Friday December 30 at T-Mobile Arena. Watch the event live on BT Sport.

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